My only concern above the falls is the satellite view shows smooth granite on both sides of the river but it's impossible to tell if it is steep or an easy stroll. Either way as Doyle said there looks like a place to get up to the NE.

murphtron wrote:@fourputt, is this the route you followed from the trail across Frog to Edyth lake? I'm guessing the pic of the large tarn is the one in the map at elevation 7385. Correct or no?

Cheers.mtron

I don't know fourputt's exact route but I can tell you that the route you've shown on the topo is almost on the best route except that I would put it precisely through the low point in the ridge and then descend, dodging various thickets of brush and small cliffs. I did this coming out of Edyth on a loop trip that dropped into L 5680+ (lake downstream of Edyth) from the vicinity of Laurel L. I've also been to Edyth following the north side of Kendrick after dropping in from Cherry Lake (much, much harder with horrific brush).

giantbrookie wrote:I don't know fourputt's exact route but I can tell you that the route you've shown on the topo is almost on the best route except that I would put it precisely through the low point in the ridge and then descend, dodging various thickets of brush and small cliffs.

@giantbrookie, to which ridge to you refer? The low point from Moraine Ridge @7800ft down to the tarn? Or the ridge NW of Frog Creek (just SW of the route shown on the topo)?

I remember years ago you gave me advice on getting to Edyth via Cherry Creek. We bailed while looking down upon Edyth from Nance Peak after scrambling up from Spotted Fawn.

All of a sudden I'm considering bailing on my planned loop route to follow the W Fork of Cherry Creek north to Hyatt Lake and then down the main fork of Cherry and back out. Instead going to Edyth Lake up Kendrick to Upper Peninsula Lake and then somehow scrambling out to Otter Lake and a forced march back down the PCT to the trailhead @ Hetch Hetchy. Hmmm... not sure I can do that in 4 days.

Forgive my mspaint skills, but pretty close. I actually found ducks passing the largest tarn on the NE slipping between two knobs to Frog Creek.

I included the ducked route above the campsite with my visit to the inlet in green. The crack heading NE from the inlet was easier going than coming down but required getting by some cliffs from the shore.

giantbrookie wrote:I don't know fourputt's exact route but I can tell you that the route you've shown on the topo is almost on the best route except that I would put it precisely through the low point in the ridge and then descend, dodging various thickets of brush and small cliffs.

@giantbrookie, to which ridge to you refer? The low point from Moraine Ridge @7800ft down to the tarn? Or the ridge NW of Frog Creek (just SW of the route shown on the topo)?

I remember years ago you gave me advice on getting to Edyth via Cherry Creek. We bailed while looking down upon Edyth from Nance Peak after scrambling up from Spotted Fawn.

All of a sudden I'm considering bailing on my planned loop route to follow the W Fork of Cherry Creek north to Hyatt Lake and then down the main fork of Cherry and back out. Instead going to Edyth Lake up Kendrick to Upper Peninsula Lake and then somehow scrambling out to Otter Lake and a forced march back down the PCT to the trailhead @ Hetch Hetchy. Hmmm... not sure I can do that in 4 days.

The saddle I refer to is on the Frog-Kendrick divide. I suspect the line missing the optimal route is more of an electronic drafting thing than anything else. As for the Moraine Ridge cutover the western part of that route through the gap is fine, but as you get above those unnamed lakes don't descend directly but stay above the cliffs by continuing north a bit so as to get easier slopes to descend to Frog Creek by. In other words you want to come down upstream or east of the highest and more easterly of the unnamed lakes. Your planned Edyth-Peninsula etc. loop sounds pretty extreme for 4 days. The loop I did with my wife and a friend back in '92 went to 5680+ on day 1 Edyth on day 2 unnamed lake S of Bearup on day 3 and out on day 4. That was a moderately paced trip, at least for days 2 and 3 (1 and 4 were fairly strenuous). Stretching such a 4-day loop all the way up to Peninsula is doable, certainly, but you would have little time to relax and take it in.